Glioblastoma (GBM) is the most common malignant primary brain tumor in adults and is one of the most aggressive and deadly forms of cancer. It is difficult for surgeons to fully remove GBM because it often has microscopic “tentacles” that extend from the tumor into healthy brain tissue. GBM is also hard to treat because it creates an immunosuppressive microenvironment that helps the cancer evade immune attack and resist therapy.

The particles carry a customized dose of cancer antigens that can provoke a strong immune response against tumors.

The immune system may recognize a cancer cell and still fail to destroy it. In a recent study, researchers at Hiroshima University and their international collaborators found that hyperactive YAP and TAZ (YAP/TAZ), two cancer-promoting proteins, were associated with genomic instability that may make cancer cells more recognizable to the immune system, while also increasing PD-L2, which helps the cells suppress T-cell attack.